Cotton cleaner



July 5, 1960 A. HERGETH ETAL COTTON CLEANER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 7, 1957 July 5, 1960 HERGETH Em, 2,943,360

COTTON CLEANER Filed June 7, 195"!- 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent 'CO'I'ION CLEANER Adolf Hergeth and Herbert Hergeth, Dolmen, Westphalia, Germany, assignors to Hergeth K.-G. Maschinenfabrik und Apparatebau, Dulmen, Westphalia, Germany Filed June 7, 1957, Ser. No. 664,284

Claims priority, application Germany June 11, 1956 11 Claims. (Cl. 19-93) The present invention relates to cotton cleaners.

Cotton which is first opened in so-called mixing bale breakers has to be. subsequently loosened up and freed from impurities, such as leaves, hard ingredients, very short unspinnable fibers, etc. Such operations are carried out in cleaners, such as horizontal cleaners.

In these cleaners, the cotton is loosened up by means of beater drums or cylinders provided with spikes and is then passed on grid bars. These grid bars are suitably arranged in such a way that they vibrate, due to the impact of the cotton, and move the usable fibers on the grid, while the impurities are dropped and collected in a chamber suificiently large, from where the fibers can be readily removed by means of doors. No vacuum is used in this kind of cleaning apparatus and the minute dust and fiber particles are not sucked through the cleaning machine, i.e., they are removed by means of the vibrating bars under the actions of the centrifugal force and of gravity. The grid bars are preferably adjustable, so that they can be readily adjusted to the respective cotton quality to be worked up. The percentage of waste material in these known cleaners is about 0.5 to 1%, depending upon the kind of cotton.

It has now been found that a superior cleaning operation can be obtained if the cotton movements are repeatedly interrupted. The impurities are separated due to the difference in specific weights and properties between the cotton and its impurities when the particles of the material suddenly hit obstructions, i.e., are stopped in their movement, and are then accelerated. It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide in horizontal cleaners a number of small bafiles or plates between the conventional partitions.

It is another object of the invention to provide these baffies movable or displaceable, so that the circulation of the cotton can be readily adjusted or changed. The movable bafiles serve as control flaps by means of which the desired degree of cleaning action can be obtained.

The control flaps may be displaced individually or together. Suitably, the movable bafiles or flaps are inwardly bent at their ends, so that the impinging action of the centrifuged material is rendered more intensive.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the so-called traverses, which are mounted in the cleaner casing between the grid bars, with guiding means permitting a baflle plate or partition inserted from the bottom to be displaced to a greater or lesser extent into the path of circulation of the cotton. Depending upon how easily or diflicultly the direction of the flow of the cotton can be reversed, the baffle plate or partition is placed more or less deeply into the path of flow of the cotton.

Still further objects and the entire scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter; it should be understood, however, that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.

Referring in more detail to the drawing, in the embodi ment illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, a machine for cleanwall of the housing 1 is denoted by 1a.

ing cotton is designed as a so-called horizontal cleaner. A plurality of beater drums 8 are provided in one common plane within a casing or housing 1, said drums being equipped with a plurality, i.e., four series of spikes 8a.

. Below each of these spiked beater drums, there is provided a screen or grid 2 composed of individual grid bars. The cotton is fed to the machine through an inlet opening 3. A discharge opening 4 is provided at the end of the row of the beater drums 8. A box 5, forming the bottoma portion of the housing 1 of the machine, serves for collecting the impurities separated from the cotton and dropping through the grid 2. The circles described by the outer or free ends of the spikes 8a of the beater drums 8 are indicated by dot-dash lines 8b. The upper slanting This wall Insupports at its inner side and intermediate. each two beater drums .8 known partitions or separator plates or baffies 6 extending toward the beaterdrums and spaced the distance of the diameter of the circle 8b. Baflles 7a, 7b, 70, also extending toward the beater drums, are provided in accordance with the invention between the partitions 6. As a result of the provision of these baflies 7a, 7b, 7c, the motion of the cotton particles carrying impurities is momentarily stopped, because these cotton particles, during their circulation, are thrown against these fixed baffles. In the example shown, three of such baifies 7a, 7b and 7c are provided. However, any number of baflles, particularly more than three, may be employed.

In the second embodiment of the invention, shown in Figures 3 and 4, the fixed partitions of Figures 1 and 2 are replaced by displaceable or movable plates or baflles designed as controllable flaps 12 hinged or pivoted at 13. Sheet metal deflectors 14 screen or shield the pivot or bearings of the bafiles at 13. The control flaps may be operated from the outside of the housing 1 either individually or together. The free ends 12a of the flaps 12 are preferably arched inwardly to increase their effectiveness as baflle plates. The flaps 12 may be adjusted so that their free ends are close to the spiked drums, as seen from the dash-dash lines indicating these flaps in Figure 4. The flaps 12 can be locked in any position, for instance, by means of detents, etc., not shown, and to be provided and operated outside of the housing 1.

As best shown in Figure 4, sheet metal plates 11 may be provided and guided in narrow gaps between fixed traverses 10 mounted inside the housing 1 below the center plane through the axes of the beater drums 8. These plates 11 are inserted from below in the gaps between the traverses 10 and can be adjusted to extend into the path of the cotton to a greater or lesser extent. The movement of the cotton is likewise stopped by means of these plates 11, because they represent additional baflie surfaces by means of which impurities are separated from the cotton.

We claim:

1. A cleaner for fibrous materials and the like comprising, a casing having an inlet and an outlet and defining therebetween a path of travel for said materials, at least one rotatable beater drum disposed within said path of travel and supported within said casing, said beater drum being provided with radially extending spike means which, during rotation of said beater drum, force said material downwardly and describe a circle of predetermined diameter, screen means disposed on one side of said beater drum, baflle means supported by said casing and located on the opposite side of said heater drum and extending in the direction thereof, adjustable plate means situated adjacent said screen means remote from said bafile means and directed toward said spike means, whereby a superior separation of impurities carried by said materials is obtained due to impact of said materials with said bafile means and said adjustable plate means.

2. A cleaner for fibrous materials and the like comprising, a casing having an inlet and an outlet and defining therebetween a path of travel for said materials, a plurality of rotatable beater drums disposed ithin said path of travel and supported within said casing, said heater drums being provided with radially extending spike means which, during rotation of said beater drums, force said material downwardly and describe a circle of predetermined diameter, screen means disposed on one side of said beater drums, baffie means supported by said casing and located on the opposite side of said heater drums and extending in the direction thereof, adjustable plate means situated adjacent said screen means remote from said bafile means and directed toward said spike means, whereby a superior separation of impurities carried by said materials is obtained due to impact of said materials with said baffie means and said adjustable plate means.

3. A cleaner according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of rotary spiked beater drums is mounted in said casing,

and wherein one set of said baffle means is provided for each of said drums.

4. A cleaner according to claim 3, wherein the axes of said drums are on a slanting plane.

5. A cleaner according to claim 1, wherein said baffle means are plates mounted in said casing to extend downwards toward the zone of action of said rotatable beater drum.

6. A cleaner according to claim 5, wherein said casing has an upper wall supporting on its inside said bafile plates opposite said rotatable beater drum.

7. A cleaner according to claim 3, wherein one screen means is provided below each of said rotary spiked beater drums, and wherein said adjustable plate means is inserted between each pair of said screen means, said adjustable plate means being displaceable with respect to said path of travel of said cotton material in said casing.

8. A cleaner according to claim 1, wherein said baffle means are displaceable and adjustable flaps.

9. A cleaner according to claim 8, wherein said flaps are hingedly and adjustably mounted in said casing at one of their ends.

10. A cleaner according to claim 9, wherein the free ends of said flaps are inwardly bent toward said rotatable beater drum.

11. A cleaner according to claim 9, wherein each of said flaps is mounted on a shaft pivotally mounted in said casing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 512,863 Clennam Jan. 16, 1894 534,804 Moran Feb. 26, 1895 2,844,847 Smith July 29, 1958 FOREIGN PATENTS 93,781 Germany Sept. 2, 1897 393,783 Great Britain June 15, 1933 

